Meet Mikogo: a new online collaboration tool

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So if you've ever had to work together with a phalanx of co-workers dispersed across time and space, you may have run into this problem of not being exactly sure how to share documents. Fortunately our blogging team hasn't (yet) run into this problem--e-mail and IM seem to suit us just fine. But you may need to do spreadsheets, presentations, the whole nine yards. How do you make sure that everyone is literally on the same page at the same time?

Gadgets: LaCie launches USB 'keys' that look like keys

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LaCie has announced three new ways to carry digital content on your key ring: the LaCie itsaKey, iamaKey and PassKey USB key drives, which were created by 5.5 Designers. The inventive, compact key shape is designed to conveniently fits in a pocket or on a key ring.

iPhone developer takes measures to combat piracy

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As good as the App Store is in many respects, here's a serious drawback you may not have considered: since all the applications on the store protected by the same copy-protection scheme, if just one person figures out how to get past it, anyone on the Internet can get thousands of applications for free.

Intel wants developers to think parallel

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Software developers were exhorted to "think parallel" Tuesday by an Intel official who stressed a changing paradigm in which applications accommodate many CPU cores.

Bad Symantec update leads to trouble

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Symantec says a buggy diagnostic program spurred a rash of Norton antivirus user complaints late Monday and Tuesday morning.

New Dark Void site delivers a trailer, cryptic messages

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With releasing last month, coming out this week, and and both being announced, , Capcom's lone original IP heading to retail this year, has been out of the limelight in recent weeks. It's a bit of a shame, as we've loved what we've seen thus far in our two extensive previews (check them out and ). It seems like attention will finally be paid to the action shooter/arcade flight game, which mixes with , as pointed out that a website has just been unleashed on the interwebs at .

Microsoft sued for $90 mil. over Halo, online technology

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Microsoft is currently being sued over technology that allows players to host and participate in online games, according to the Boston Globe. Paltalk, a company that specializes in Internet chat service, claims that they own the patent rights to inventions developed by MPath Interactive Inc., which allows Halo players to run "real-time, multiplayer online games." Microsoft, however, says that the MPath technology is for older dial-up services and don't apply to the way online system works.

Free iPhoto plug-in lets users share photos and locations

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, an online photo sharing and geotagging community, has released 1.0, a free iPhoto plug-in that provides a simple and convenient way to upload photos directly from iPhoto to locr.

Chinese newspaper says Apple prepping touch-screen netbook

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As at the end of January's Macworld Conference & Expo, "The Best Is Yet To Come," reports suggest that Apple might just be prepping a brand new innovative touch-screen netbook.

As recession hits IT, HP tries variable pricing on services

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In an effort to make its outsourcing and IT services more affordable in a , Hewlett-Packard Co. is changing its services pricing to a model that's akin to ordering a customized laptop.

Wolfram Alpha takes on Google

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A British physicist is to launch a new internet search engine, dubbed Wolfram Alpha, which will let users ask a fact-based question and have it compute an answer.

Renascent discusses Killzone 2 title creation

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Killzone 2 is one of this spring's highest-profile games for the . For the , developer Guerrilla Games contacted Dutch motion graphics designer Joost Korngold -- aka -- to put together an exciting way to finish off the game. Set against Killzone 2's highly regarded in-game graphics, the titles use a stripped-back, simply textured approach for a striking, unusual look.

Behind the scenes on Boolab's Alzheimer's campaign

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Barcelona-based animation company has recently completed a powerful for the Fundació Pasqual Maragall's initiative, through the agency Externa Comunicación. The ad aims to raise public awareness and funding for investigation into the disease, and combines an experimental style with a powerful message about the devastating effect of Alzheimer's on the brain.

AT&T earmarks $11 billion for wireless, wireline broadband

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will spend more than US$11 billion to expand and improve its 3G wireless and wireline broadband networks in 2009.

GridIron releases second public beta of Flow

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GridIron Software has released the second public beta of its GridIron Flow software for managing creative projects, which includes the first version for Windows. This supports the 32-bit and 64-bit versions of Windows XP, and the 32-bit version of Vista. The final version will also add support for the 64-bit version of Windows Vista.

Online Sky Player adds Sky Movies, Nat Geo, G.O.L.D

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has added six new channels available to subscribers of Sky Player TV, its internet-based TV service.

Some Cellular Jamming Should Be Legal

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Not long ago, I attended a public-safety workshop about weapons of mass destruction, something I do in one of my volunteer do-gooder lives. We were watching a slide and video presentation given by a Special Agent of the Federal Bureau of Investigation. The speaker was a highly-trained and apparently fearless bomb disposal agent, talking about the danger posed by easy-to-build car bombs.

HP expands virtual storage offerings

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Hewlett-Packard aims to cut the total cost of storage while allowing enterprises to keep adding capacity and forging ahead with virtualization projects in tough economic times.

Dell launches its first rugged touch-screen laptop

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Dell on Tuesday is expected to launch the tough Latitude E6400 XFR laptop with a touch screen, which the company claims can withstand drops, dust and high-pressure water sprays.

Spiderman guides Sony Ericsson into South Korean market

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Sony Ericsson is calling on a superhero to help it enter the tough South Korean market. On Tuesday the company launched its brand with a version of the Xperia X1 cell phone that comes with the full Spiderman 3 movie loaded onto every handset.

Sun's Rock processor on track for this year, exec says

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After a year's delay, Sun Microsystems' 16-core "Rock" server chip is on track for delivery in the fall, the head of Sun's systems business said Monday.

Sony provides more details of OLED touchscreen Walkman

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Sony has provided some detailed specifications for its promised and anticipated X-series Walkman that was teased at January's CES but the launch date remains the biggest unanswered question.

China's 3G build up boosts Texas Instruments

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Texas Instruments on Monday became the latest chip maker to increase its view of the first quarter because of increased demand for communications chips from China.

IT group to share HR data to cushion impact of job losses

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As the Philippine IT sector suffers from the impact of the decision of some technology companies to either close or scale down their Philippine operations because of the ongoing financial crisis, industry group Information Technology Association of the Philippines (ITAP) hopes to help cushion the impact of IT jobs losses by sharing human resources database among its member firms.

ITV online businesses sold off or closed as profits tank

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has announced a pre-tax loss of £2.73 billion (US$3.8 billion) as the recession bites into advertising revenues. Michael Grade, the corporation's chief executive also announced Monday morning that it is revising its online strategy with the sale of the Friends Reunited and Scoot brands, while ITV Local will be closed down.

Companies get checklist for complying with PCI standard

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The organization responsible for administering the is offering new guidance to companies on how to focus their PCI DSS compliance efforts so as to more quickly them in position to meet the rules on protecting credit and debit card data.

National Napping Day: To sleep, perchance to dream

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The obscure national holidays keep rolling in. Last week we celebrated by drinking root beer and listening to , the squarest musician in history. Monday, of course, is National Napping Day, which since 1999 has followed Daylight Savings Day when we drag ourselves out of bed an hour earlier despite what the clock sayzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz....

MadWorld out Tuesday, Resident Evil 5 out Friday

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Monday marks the first day in a huge week for video game new releases. Kicking off the week are the first two "New Play Control" Wii-makes, and , which are both out today on the Wii. The bigger game releases come out later on in the week, including two of the most highly-anticipated games of 2009.

Resident Evil 5 cinematic director in talks for film

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has reported that , director of 2006's , not to mention cinematic director of the highly anticipated survival horror title , is currently in talks with Capcom to develop a live-action film based on one of the company's properties.

UK health ad insults game developers

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In effort to promote a healthy lifestyle, the UK government has launched a series of ads as part of the campaign. However, the most recent print ad became the topic of much controversy among Britain's game developers. The ad depicts a tired young boy holding a PlayStation controller with text that reads: "Risk an early death, just do nothing."

Study: social cliques carry over to the Internet

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Apparently, high school is never really over -- especially when it comes to social networking. The Internet might allow us to interact with people from every conceivable walk of life, but an says users gravitate to the same social cliques online that they occupy in the real world.

Researchers: cheap scanners can 'fingerprint' paper

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Think two blank sheets of paper are the same? Look closer.

Otellini: Windows 7 upgrade for netbooks 'going to be tough'

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Microsoft has a challenge: Sell a Windows upgrade as a way to save money.

Smartphone owners pan BlackBerry App Store's starting price

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RIM by that apps sold in the soon-to-launch will start at US$2.99 instead of competing with Apple's model, which allows 99 cent apps.

Megavideo breaks into comScore's Top 10 video sites

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YouTube has surpassed 100 million U.S. viewers, but the latest comScore report on online video has a more surprising stat: Megavideo, a YouTube-like site with entire TV shows ripped from cable TV, is now in comScore's Top 10 most-watched list, booting ESPN off the list and sneaking up on Disney and AOL with over 100 million viewings in January.

Hidden iTunes: The Five Best Keyboard Shortcuts

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Regular Hassle-Free PC (HFPC) readers know that I love keyboard shortcuts. Not, not love: lurve. (Quick trivia quiz: Name the movie in which that word was coined.) So today let's talk about the five best ways to zip around without ever taking your hands off the ol' QWERTY.

Telstra ups cable to 100Mbps, dwarfs NBN

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Telstra Monday announced sweeping upgrades to its national Hybrid Fibre Coaxial (HFC), or cable, network which will see 1.8 million Melbourne homes receive Internet access speeds of up to 100Mpbs by years' end.

New Webcam Technology Turns Baseball Cards 3-D

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Baseball cards are getting a high-tech twist, thanks to new 3-D technology within the Web browsing world. The Topps Company has revealed a line of collector's cards that work with your Webcam to bring players to life -- and all the action unfolds right on top of your desk.

Swab Out Your System With Comodo System Cleaner

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Ready to muck out your PC--but not willing to spend money on it? Freebie can clean out several major problem spots. It's simple to use, does its job quickly, then gets out of the way.

3D TV Service Could Debut This Year

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Consider this your warning: Ryan Seacrest could be jumping out of your television sooner than you think. Three-dimensional television service, typically discussed as a "sometime in the future" type of technology, is now being targeted for a 2009 rollout in the United Kingdom. A British communications provider says it's already testing a 3D TV delivery system and could be ready to offer the protocol to the public within a matter of months. Could the U.S. be far behind?

Android For Desktops? I Doubt It

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For years, my friend Stephen J. Vaughan-Nichols has been trying to turn into something it is not: A successful and popular desktop operating system. Everyone needs a reason to get up in the morning and I am glad he has found such a long lasting (and profitable) one. He is a smart guy, but I am still waiting for the Linux that will change my life.

Lies, Damned Lies, and Apple Netbook Rumors

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The Web is rife with speculation about Apple's rumored netbook computer, which, depending on your source and/or pundit of choice, either: 1) may have a touch screen and may ship later this year; 2) may ship later this year, but whatever it is, it's not a netbook; 3) may not exist at all.

Download Accelerator Manager Disappoints

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(DAM for short) is one of many programs that promises to help you download better and faster from the Internet. But there are far better products available, including the excellent free . If you need to make your downloads more efficient, DAP is a better bet.

Device Fingerprinting Aims To Stop Online Fraud

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It has been said that on the Internet no one knows you are a dog, but if you are a financial institution, or even a dating service, authentication is very serious business. User names and passwords are no longer secure enough, and complicating matters are vast networks of computers that can be directed to open and close thousands of accounts worldwide in mere seconds. That's why Device ID, the practice of fingerprinting the means by which an account is accessed, is seen as a growth security industry in 2009.

Active@ File Recovery Rescues Your Lost Files

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Nothing hurts more than losing an important file to your own stupidity. Without going into too much detail--I know the feeling well. However, there's no analgesic like a good recovery program and (various pricing, see below) is Alka-Seltzer personified.

Adobe fixes security vulnerability with Acrobat 9, Reader 9

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Adobe on Tuesday in its Acrobat 9 and Reader 9 applications, which the company said "would cause the application to crash and could potentially allow an attacker to take control of the affected system."